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  • From: Mark <mpludwig@facstaff.wisc.edu>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] Afghanistan redux
  • Date: Tue, 24 Sep 2002 10:05:00 -0500

At 11:48 AM 9/24/02 +1000, you wrote:
It might be interesting to see how long the war continues. The Iraqis, unlike remnant Taliban and El Queda in Afghanistan, seem ready to fight a conventional war of the type the US is trained and equipped to fight. Firepower and the destruction of hard targets are at the core of this type of conflict (remember the UN assault on Serbia by US and NATO a few years ago) so that should put the US in a better position than were they confronting guerrilla or militia units ('assymetric warfare' - remember Somalia, Vietnam and, possibly, Afghanistan to come).

I quite concerned that it will look a lot like Somalia, urban war in Iraq could get very ugly indeed. I happen to know one of the fellas who went through the 93 fire fight in Mogadishu and he's pretty skeptical of any forces ability to successfully fight in a civilian urban area without committing serious atrocities.

The Australian media is doing a good job carrying the public discussion around Iraq and commentators in the newspapers, radio, television and online news services point out the immense uncertainties facing the US and its allies, the likely Israeli response to a WMD attach by Iraq and the uncertainties in the Arab world that could flow from a war... it's those which will go on for years, perhaps... especially if the US does not take a stronger stand on ending the Israel-Palestine conflict, which could to some extent moderate reaction.

If you follow the right wing happy talk the whole Arab world will roll over into democracy and the A/I conflict will suddenly get easy to solve. What farcical bullshit. Anyone got a nice PC project they need help on in Ireland, Mexico, Canada or really anywhere but the united states? I really don't want to pay taxes for this.
M

.........................
Russ Grayson
Sydney, Australia
.........................

Mark P. Ludwig
Poultry Research Lab
University of Wisconsin -Madison
608-262-1730 WK
608-846-7125 HM





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